During post-debate analysis of the November 15 Democratic presidential debate, U.S. News & World Report editor David Gergen claimed that Sen. Barack Obama "was asked about, is the surge [in Iraq] working, he couldn't even acknowledge, hey, look, the death numbers are down," adding that Obama "dismiss[ed] it altogether." In fact, Obama did not refuse to acknowledge that U.S. deaths in Iraq "have been declining steadily since the spring"; he said that it is "absolutely wrong" to conclude from a decline in violence in Iraq that President Bush's strategy is working.

In an article about a report from CNN's Out in the Open on Sen. John McCain's recent exchange with a supporter in Hilton Head, South Carolina, The Hill reported that McCain's "campaign laments that CNN portrayed the event as though McCain did not defend [Sen. Hillary] Clinton forcefully enough. The senator, in the short video clip, expressed his respect for the former first lady." But the article did not note that McCain described the question -- "How do we beat the bitch?" -- as "excellent."

In the question-and-answer portion of the November 7 press conference in which Pat Robertson announced his endorsement of Rudy Giuliani, no reporters asked Giuliani to comment on Robertson's history of controversial statements. Further, a Nexis database search shows only two news outlets that, in their reports on the endorsement, appeared to have questioned Giuliani or his campaign about Robertson's past remarks.

A New York Times article quoted Chris Matthews saying, "Deceit is what drives me crazy, either by Bill Clinton or the hawks in this administration." However, Media Matters for America has documented several instances in which Matthews has failed to note "deceit" by Rudy Giuliani. Despite evidence of Giuliani's "deceit," Matthews routinely praises Giuliani and his candidacy.